Delta Reports 1: Research in the cultural history of the Ancient Egyptian Nile Delta

REVIEW BY SARAH GRIFFITHS ‘Without the Nile Delta, ancient Egyptian culture could not have emerged’. This bold statement begins the first of a new series of volumes that aims to publish more rapidly the fieldwork reports from sites across north Egypt. Sadly, many of the magnificent Delta cities and settlements (such as Pi-Ramesses, Buto, and Bubastis) have long since disappeared; the north ‘is but a weak reflection of what was once’, long overshadowed by the monumental landscapes of Upper Egypt. However, over the last two decades, many international institutions ‘have amassed an amazing archaeological record’, revealing the Delta’s unique environmental conditions, diverse p